Anything new with MIM?

J

Joshua J.

Joined
Feb 27, 2005
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After hijacking the picture thread, I thought it best to ask about it here.

Is Kershaw working on advancing the MIM technology?

I was thinking about it the other day (I know you guys love it when people speculate about manufacturing processes).
The MIM process starts with powder steel mixed with a plastic bonding material, is molded, sintered, pressed and then heat treated like a normal blade.
The only part that involves grinding here is the final sharpening (as far as I know).
Right now the only thing stopping people from using stuff like CPM S125V (or dare I say CPM S150V), is that it's too hard to grind.
Being a CPM steel means it is in powder form at some point.

In my mind, this means that it would not be too terribly hard to go and get some powdered alloy from crucible, and stick it in the MIM process.
The Offset, already being a very high end knife, could only benefit from being the first knife to feature this outrageously high performance steel (IMO).

Not to mention that since you only need the metal produced in powder form, it opens up possibilities for some pretty crazy alloys.

How about it Thomas, have you guys been looking into anything like that?
 
Interesting idea, but I think there is a fundamental flaw in your reasoning. It is my understanding that the constituents of the steel are in powder form, not the steel itself, in the CPM process. In the MIT-E and other MIM processes, the final steel is the one that is a powder mixed with polymer.
 
Not quite.

"The CPM process also begins with a homogeneous molten bath similar to conventional melting."

"The powder is relatively spherical in shape and uniform in composition as each particle is essentially a micro-ingot..."

http://www.crucibleservice.com/products/CPM/index.cfm

Once again, it should work.

The only potential problem I can see is if the new alloy is too hard to press into final shape.
 
Joshua J. said:
After hijacking the picture thread, I thought it best to ask about it here.

Is Kershaw working on advancing the MIM technology?

?
Click to expand...

I wasn't aware that MIM technology was Kershaw's to change, unless they were to bring it in house. My understanding is that MIM is VERY expensive... that's why a company like kershaw would only want to contract out for specific needs.
 
OregonEdge said:
I wasn't aware that MIM technology was Kershaw's to change, unless they were to bring it in house. My understanding is that MIM is VERY expensive... that's why a company like kershaw would only want to contract out for specific needs.
Click to expand...

I hadn't considered that.
Even if it is commissioned work, they could still "commission" some experiments.
Looking at MIM company websites, most of them do a wide variety of alloys.
Maybe there's something cost prohibitive about higher alloy content than 440C?
 
OregonEdge said:
I wasn't aware that MIM technology was Kershaw's to change, unless they were to bring it in house. My understanding is that MIM is VERY expensive... that's why a company like kershaw would only want to contract out for specific needs.
Click to expand...

Are we sure that the MIM technology process used for Kershaw's Offset blades wasn't done in-house? The previous MIM process thread seemed to imply (to me at least) that it was...

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=479905

Ray :)
 
jj, there are some S90V Offset blades in house. We haven't got around to finishing or testing them. Doesn't look like there were any major issues in using S90V within the MIM/HIP process. We'll get back to it one of these days.

There is also a 2nd pattern we are also playing around with, but it's a ways out as of today.
 
I may well have missed it - but compared to other ways of creating a folder's blade -how tough is the blade that results from the MIM process - compared to the same steel dealt with in a conventional fashion? Yes - I know that you can get some very interesting and possibly even highly functional blade shapes out of MIM that would be insanely expensive to build any other way - but are these all collectors or are some of you actually using these as EveryDayUsers? What have been the results? Tip strength,edge retention ,edge chiping , etc.?
 
Thomas W said:
jj, there are some S90V Offset blades in house. We haven't got around to finishing or testing them. Doesn't look like there were any major issues in using S90V within the MIM/HIP process. We'll get back to it one of these days.

There is also a 2nd pattern we are also playing around with, but it's a ways out as of today.
Click to expand...

Thomas, you do realize that if you can work with alloys other people can't, this could be the biggest step forward since particle steel was introduced.
You might even be able to compete with Friction Forged blades (Rc70 here we come).

And sign me up for one of those S90V Offsets please!
 
Joshua J. said:
Thomas, you do realize that if you can work with alloys other people can't, this could be the biggest step forward since particle steel was introduced.
Click to expand...
Well sure JJ, that was the hook when we entered in with the MIM/HIP blade patent. The capability to work with higher alloy grades of steel, and even to be able to mix custom types of blade materials for specific applications. This can all be done with very little machine time needed. You also have the ability to add features to a blade that would be cost prohibitive any other way. Lot's of potential for sure.

There are a few obstacles still to overcome with this technology, and we are slowly moving towards understanding them. I trust that our future will bring on more "exotic" MIM blades and steel.

"Biggest step since PM?", hmmmm, I'll have to think about that.
 
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